Is my Guinea Pig having seizures?

Question

Recently I've been coming into my room to find my guinea pig, Bobby, lying on his side twitching. He shakes all over including his eyes twitching really oddly and stops after about 10 seconds. I got him in 6th grade and I'm about 19 now, so he's about 6 1/2 years old. I've read up on mite related problems and I can't notice any loss or hair increased scratching. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

Sorry to hear it. It' not mites. With out a blood test It's kind of hard to tell.but sounds like some sort of stroke or heart attacks. My piggies are the same age. You have done well in keeping your piggie

Strokes

Strokes are less common in guinea pigs than heart attacks and it is very easy to distinguish the two. The symptoms are total collapse with the head and sometimes the body contorted from waist up at forty five degrees. There is nystagmus of the eyes, that is, they slowly slip towards one corner of the eye then rapidly jerk back to the central position, repeatedly. At the slightest touch the animal will freak out and the heart beat is very rapid.

These symptoms are, of course the very opposite to those of a heart attack victim and consequently the treatment is different.

Put the animal in a box with lots of hay and leave it in the dark for about two to three hours and leave it to stabilize in peace and quite. If it has a repeat stroke, the chances are that it will die. However, in more cases than not, providing the animal gets the chance to stabilize in it's own time, the prognosis is fairly good.

As it is so important to leave the animal in peace, you must monitor it very quietly, so put it in a place where it can be observed without out having to move the box it is in. Once the animal will allow you to touch it and handle it without traumatizing it, in my experience this usually takes two to three hours, you must think about rehydrating it, subcutaneously at the dose rate of twenty to thirty ml per session.

If the owner cannot do this it has to be taken to a veterinary surgeon, or preferably one should be called out, for the less the animal is disturbed, the better.

In the cases I have dealt with, after two rehydrations which were about six hours apart, I managed to get the animals to take fluid orally. Never attempt to rehydrate orally until you are certain that the animal can swallow with ease.

The nystagmus sometimes clears by the time the animal is ready for the first rehydration, but more often than not it continues at a gradually reduced rate and for a day or so is replaced by the hunted look that heart attack victims suffer from.

It can take for up to two weeks for the head and body to level up but most animals who suffer strokes are left with a slight tilt to the head, which is more noticeable when they are picked up. Sometimes it is necessary to give the same kind of water therapy as for the heart attack cases, see Swimming therapy

The good news is that stoke victims usually make a complete recovery. There is less incidence of second strokes as there is of repeats of heart attacks.

Answer 2

Not sure if G Pigs can have them or not. I have four and they popcorn when they're in a good mood. If you've had one that long, you know what that is. But I did have a female Beagle once who had very bad seizures that would last a few minutes. When she was having a seizure her body would get very stiff and she would shake a lot. Wouldn't describe it as twitching, tho. She had lived through Parvo as a puppy, before we got her, and the vet said it had caused her some brain damage, which in turn caused the seizures. Hope you find out what's causing that, I'd like to know in case any of mine develop those symptoms.

Answer 3

Taking her to the vet has to be the FIRST resort in this situation, not the last resort, she badly needs professional attention from an exotics vet, and she needs it NOW. Ask your vet if you can pay in installments, or borrow money from friends or family, or even the bank, it won't be that much, but you cannot and must not let your guinea pig suffer. Go overdrawn at the bank if necessary. Alternatively you could take her to an animal rescue or shelter, PDSA, RSPCA, checking first that they have a vet on duty. Your guinea pig depends on you, don't let her down. Take her to the vet straight away. Get off the computer and down to the vet. Now.

Answer 4

Your Guinea Pig is in a state of quite old age sadly , It's nice to know you've had it for such a long time. The age of your pig is in itself possibly a reminder that he's reached the end of his life cycle . I suspect since you've had this little guy for so long that you've done all the right things in his care . I doubt that much could be done at this stage of his life , I feel badly saying it but be prepared for the worst because his time is just drawing near and just comfort him as much as you can and remember the enjoyable times with him . I'm sure he looked forward to all the attention he's received from you over the years . What a good friend he's had , good luck to you and your pet .

Answer 5

Wow, that's an old pig! Ours lived for 7 years but died of an eye infection & we had her put down. Do research on the net before forking over alot of money to a vet just to let them tell you need medication or it's got some wacked out disease. But if you can afford it, take it into the vet. Good luck.

Answer 6

idk but my guinea pig does similar stuff. not on the ground but he looks more like he's having violent hick ups. i went to the pet store and they said he might be stressed by his environment changing. i also hear that the life spane is usually 2-4 yrs... so urs might just be gettin on in age. hope u find out. sry,

Answer 7

It could be a heart attack. One time I was holding one of my piggies and he started shaking violently and then he died and the vet said he had had a heart attack.

Answer 8

Yes he might be having seizures. U might want to take him to the vet real soon.

Answer 9

Sorry,
There are a lot of guinea pigs on myspace. Maybe you could video tape it.